Stoke City boss Michael O’Neill says the club decided to go for former Nigeria international John Mikel Obi because his desire tallies with their own.
Former Chelsea midfielder, Mikel signed a one-year deal on Monday to become Stoke’s fourth summer signing.
Mikel, 33, won an array of honours during an 11-year stay at Stamford Bridge and returns to English football after a spell in the Turkish Super Lig with Trabzonspor.
“We are delighted to bring John to the club,” Stoke manager Micheal O’Neill told the official Potters website.
“His playing career speaks for itself and underlines his calibre as a player.”
“We spent four hours talking and he made it clear he wants to get back into the Premier League and finish his career there, and hopefully he can do that with Stoke City.”
Mikel made more than 370 appearances for Chelsea after joining them from Norwegian club Lyn in 2006.
The 91-times capped Nigeria midfielder who retired from international football following last year’s African Cup of Nations, won two Premier League winner’s medals in West London.
Mikel also won three FA Cups, the League Cup, Champions League and Europa League at Chelsea.
After a spell in China, he joined Middlesbrough in January 2019 and made 19 appearances before moving to Turkey.
Mikel joins Morgan Fox, James Chester, and Steven Fletcher at Stoke ahead of the 2020/21 Sky Bet Championship season.
